John has died, contracted COVID-19

[Maybo]

My friend wrote the following sentence:

John has died, contracted COVID-19 while in the hospital for cancer.

I'd like to know if the sentence indicates that John was died of COVID-19?

If I say John has died and contracted COVID-19 while in the hospital for cancer, then we don't know the reason of his death?

 

[SoothingDave]

This sentence is a splice. It is better as two sentences. And no, it doesn't tell us what he died from. But don't worry, the government will count it as a covid death.

 

[emsr2d2]

My friend wrote the following sentence:

John has died; he contracted COVID-19 while in the hospital being treated for cancer.

I'd like to know if the sentence indicates that John [STRIKE]was[/STRIKE] died of COVID-19.

If I say John has died and contracted COVID-19 while in the hospital for cancer, [STRIKE]then we don't[/STRIKE] do we not know the reason of his death?

Please note my changes above. I have added punctuation and words that would render John's sentence grammatically correct. I don't for one second think he was worrying about grammar while he was reporting the death of his friend.

We don't know if John died of Covid. We know that when he died, he had Covid. That is the case for the majority of "Covid deaths". If you test positive any time in the 28 days before your death, you're counted as a Covid death (in the UK, at least). Even if his death was the result of the cancer or the cancer treatment, the fact that he had tested positive in the 28 days leading up to his death means that Covid is almost certainly what his death certificate will show.

 

[Tdol]

Or died, after contracting.

 

[Tdol]

We don't know if John died of Covid.

Some people call this dying with Covid.